Pages

Tuesday, September 20, 2016

Jumping Genres

So, I finished reading the novelization for the Warcraft movie yesterday. Loved it. Noticed a couple of loose-hanging plot threads, but they are kind of minor. Oddly enough, they could be really good hooks for a sequel. But if the movie doesn't warrant one, I'm not sure another book will ever come along either.

Overall, though, I greatly enjoyed the book. The characters were all very fleshed out, and with the added benefit of internal narrative, it allowed a better view of the characters' various backgrounds. The action was exciting, and the world-building was more than adequate. It's clearly meant to be the first in a trilogy or series, building on a modified variation of the Warcraft video game lore. If you saw the movie (or even if you didn't), you might enjoy the book, as well as the prequel Durotan.

After I was done, I knew I wanted to keep this reading momentum going, so I immediately went to my shelf for another book. I have many, many unread books, and I seem to gain new ones at least every week on average. So, there was no shortage to choose from. But, having just finished an epic fantasy, I kind of wanted to go in a different direction. Mainly because I knew that another fantasy would probably suffer by comparison.

I briefly considered a Mack Bolan book. I even read the first few pages. But, it didn't really grab me, so I slid it back and perused some more. Then I lit upon my small collection of westerns. They're mostly Louis L'Amour, so I grabbed those and read the backs of each. After some contemplation, I decided on Brionne. It's hooked me right away.

One thing I have to say about L'Amour, he doesn't screw around. He likes to build his world through narrative, giving the reader everything they need at the moment, and not much more. He's also not afraid to hit you with tragedy early on to set up his hero's journey. Brionne is a former Army officer who turned down a post to President Grant's cabinet, in order to travel out west with his son, after his wife is killed by outlaws who were hoping to catch him at home. But, his journey west is already nerve-wracking, and he suspects he's being followed.

On a broader note, I've been having little crises about my life a lot. My job is not doing anything for my mood and happiness aside from providing a paycheck. So, I'm already looking at other options. I am one class away from a MS in History, but that class is basically me writing a Thesis. And when I tried to do it last time, it was not going well. I ended up dropping in order to not fail. I need to figure that out, because being this close and not being able to finish is killing me.

I started looking into what it would take to become a teacher. After going to back-to-school night for my stepdaughter, I started thinking that I could probably do that. And I might even enjoy it. So, I'm looking into the various avenues of getting certified. However, right now it looks like another 2 years of schooling, which I dread having to pay for. Yet, a part of me says "Why worry? You already have a mountain of student dept, what's a few thousand more?"

I'm still thinking about all of that.

In the meantime, I'm trying to get myself to write again, but it's slow-going. I did manage to submit a story for publication, so I'm hoping that will pan out. And I have a few other projects, as always. Including one with an actual deadline. In fact, I should probably be working on that instead of this blog...